Packaging that can be checked for tampering

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

0001This applications claims priority from French Patent Application No. 04 00900 filed Jan. 30, 2004.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

0002The present invention relates to packaging elements, such as envelopes, boxes, or parcels that can be checked electronically for tampering.

PRIOR ART

0003Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID) technology is in very widespread use in many fields. That technology is often used in labels referred to as “radio tags” and that include an electronic chip that contains digital information that is consultable remotely at radio frequency by means of a read device.

0004Although their main function consists in storing information that is easy to access remotely, such tags are sometimes used as tampering indicators for checking whether a packaging element such as an envelope or a parcel has been opened in unauthorized manner. In which case, the tag is provided with a tie that, once broken, prevents any possibility of reading the information contained in the chip of the tag. The tag equipped with a tie thus acts as a seal and is placed at the portions of the item that are manipulated for opening it. For example, for an envelope, the tie of the tag is fastened between the opening flap and the remainder of the body of the envelope so that said envelope cannot be opened normally without breaking the tie.

0005However, that type of tag makes it possible to check whether unauthorized opening has taken place only when the packaging element has been opened conventionally, i.e. by manipulating the means provided for opening it. For example, it is quite possible to access the contents of an envelope or of a parcel without touching the opening means provided for the purpose of opening it, by cutting open one edge of the envelope or one surface of the parcel. In which case, the tie is not broken, and the remote electronic checking of the parcel for tampering is ineffective. Only meticulous visual inspection makes it possible to determine whether the packaging has been tampered with. In an industrial context such as the context of a shipping or logistics company, for example, such a solution appears to be unrealistic in view of the quantities of envelopes or of parcels to be handled every day.

OBJECT AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

0006An object of the present invention is to remedy the above-mentioned drawbacks and to provide packaging that can be checked electronically for tampering regardless of which portion of the packaging has been opened.

0007These objects are achieved by means of packaging that can be checked for tampering, which packaging comprises a hermetically sealed body, said body being formed by folding a sheet of material that has been cut to a predefined shape, which package, in accordance with the invention, further comprises an electronic component that can be interrogated remotely and that is formed by data storage means connected to an antenna circuit, said antenna circuit extending at least over the entire periphery of the inside surface of the sheet of material.

0008Thus the packaging of the invention includes storage means that can be interrogated remotely and that are useful for identifying and tracking an object transported in the packaging while also acting as a tampering indicator for indicating whether the packaging has been tampered with. Since the antenna circuit is disposed over the entire periphery of the sheet of material, any opening of the packaging from any edge thereof is detected because such opening gives rise to a break in the antenna circuit. The packaging is checked for tampering by interrogating it remotely: if it is not possible to read the information stored in the component, that indicates that the antenna has been broken as a result of fraudulent opening.

0009The antenna circuit may also extend over the main inside faces of the sheet of material. The level of opening detection is thus increased because even opening of the packaging by means of an incision being made in one of the faces thereof can be detected.

0010In order to cover additional detection zones on the packaging, the antenna circuit disposed on the sheet of material may describe a series of undulations or of zigzags.

0011According to a characteristic of the invention, the data storage means and the antenna circuit of the electronic component are disposed on the inside surface of the sheet of material so that it is protected inside the packaging once said packaging has been assembled.

0012According to another characteristic of the invention, a first portion of the antenna circuit is disposed on one inside face of the sheet of material, the complementary second portion of the antenna circuit being disposed on the other inside face of the sheet at a place determined so that it completes the first portion of the circuit once the packaging has been assembled.

0013The antenna circuit may be constituted by a very thin conductor wire that is bonded by adhesive to the inside surface of the sheet of material, or by a conductive ink deposited on the inside surface of the sheet of material. The use of a conductive ink makes it easy to form a variety of patterns in the antenna circuit, such as undulations or zigzags, for example.

0014The invention is applicable to various types of packaging such as, in particular, envelopes or foldable boxes used as parcels. When the packaging is provided with weak portions, a portion of the antenna circuit may cross said weak portions so as to make it easier for said circuit to be broken in the event of fraudulent opening.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

0015Other characteristics and advantages of the invention appear from the following description of particular embodiments of the invention, given as non-limiting examples, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

0016<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref> is a view of an envelope in an unfolded state showing a first embodiment of packaging of the present invention;

0017<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2</figref> is a view of the envelope of <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2</figref> as assembled;

0018<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 3</figref> is a view of a box in an unfolded form, corresponding to a second embodiment of the packaging of the invention;

0019<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 4</figref> is a view of the box of <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 3</figref> as assembled; and

0020<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 5</figref> is a variant embodiment of the envelope of <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref>;

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

0021In order to avoid unnecessarily complicating the description, the present invention is described essentially with reference to envelopes and parcel boxes that are packaging elements in common use for carrying documents or objects. However, it appears clearly that the present invention is applicable to any other type of packaging which, once assembled, forms a hermetically sealed enclosure around the packaged object.

0022<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 1 and 2</figref> show an embodiment of packaging of the present invention applied to a conventional letter envelope. <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref> shows an envelope <b>100</b> in its unfolded form. The envelope <b>100</b> is formed from a sheet <b>101</b> of paper or the like which is cut out to a plan that defines the various elements to fold and to assemble together in order to form the body of the envelope in which the object (e.g. documents) to be carried can be received.

0023In the example considered, the sheet <b>101</b> has a first portion <b>110</b> provided with three flaps <b>111</b>, <b>112</b>, and <b>113</b>, and a second portion <b>120</b>. In well known manner, the envelope is assembled by folding the portions <b>110</b> and <b>120</b> over along the fold line <b>120</b><i>a</i>, the flaps <b>111</b> and <b>113</b> closing the side edges of the envelope by being folded over along the lines <b>111</b><i>a </i>and <b>113</b><i>a</i>, and by being bonded with adhesive to the portion <b>120</b>. The sheet <b>101</b> thus folded and bonded with adhesive forms the envelope <b>100</b> into which objects, such as documents, can be inserted via the opening left open by the portion <b>112</b>. Once filled, the envelope is closed finally in well known manner by means of the portion <b>112</b> whose face facing the portion <b>120</b> is provided with a self-adhesive strip <b>114</b>.

0024The present invention seeks to form packaging that can be checked remotely, reliably, and rapidly for tampering. For this purpose, an electronics component <b>130</b> of the transponder type is used as an indicator for such tampering. Since the electronics component can be interrogated remotely as described in detail below, if said component is damaged physically to the point of no longer being interrogatable, it is possible to determine that the packaging has been opened in unauthorized manner. In other words, if the component is mechanically and therefore electronically intact, this indicates that the package of the invention has not been tampered with.

0025More precisely, as shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref>, the electronics component <b>130</b> is formed by an electronics chip <b>131</b> connected to an antenna <b>132</b>, both of which are disposed on an inside surface of the sheet <b>101</b>. The antenna <b>132</b> makes it possible for the information contained in the chip to be read remotely. The antenna <b>132</b> is formed by a circuit or winding <b>133</b> which comprises two conductors <b>1331</b> and <b>1332</b> that meet at the end of the antenna circuit <b>133</b>. The conductors <b>1331</b> and <b>1332</b> are also connected to the chip <b>131</b>. The conductors <b>1331</b> and <b>1332</b> therefore form a closed circuit (loop) corresponding to the antenna circuit <b>133</b>. Thus, any break in either of the conductors <b>1331</b>, <b>1332</b> anywhere around the antenna circuit <b>133</b> opens said circuit and makes any transmission with the electronics chip impossible. In the invention, checking the packaging for tampering (i.e. detecting opening thereof) takes place as a function of the state of the antenna circuit which is either closed and operational, indicating that the packaging is intact, or else interrupted at one or more places, then indicating that the package has been opened. In addition, the presence of the electronics chip <b>131</b> and of the antenna circuit <b>132</b> on the inside surface only of the envelope guarantees excellent confidentiality for the tempering checking.

0026The chip <b>131</b> comprises mainly a data memory electronic circuit that can be read accessed and also optionally write accessed. Reading data from and optionally writing data to the memory takes place by radio-frequency transmission, in particular by means of the antenna <b>132</b>. If the circuit that is constituted by the antenna <b>132</b> is interrupted, said antenna becomes non-operational and no transmission with the chip <b>131</b> can then be performed, thereby indicating that the envelope has been opened fraudulently.

0027In order to detect unauthorized opening of the envelope regardless of which edge of the envelope is cut or torn open, the antenna circuit <b>133</b> is disposed at least over the entire periphery of the envelope (turn <b>133</b><i>c </i>in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref>) so as to cover all of the edges of the envelope. In this way, the antenna <b>132</b> passes at least once over the fold lines <b>111</b><i>a</i>, <b>112</b><i>a</i>, <b>113</b><i>a</i>, and <b>120</b><i>a </i>that form the edges of the envelope <b>100</b> after assembly. Thus, once the envelope is assembled and closed as shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2</figref>, the antenna <b>132</b> is present over all of the edges of the envelope and any attempt to open it via any one of said edges can be detected, unlike in the prior art device which only makes it possible to detect opening via the flap <b>112</b>.

0028The antenna circuit <b>133</b> can also extend over the inner regions of the portions <b>110</b> and <b>120</b> (turns <b>133</b><i>a </i>and <b>133</b><i>b</i>) in order to make it possible to detect opening of the envelope via the main front or back faces.

0029In addition in order to increase the security level even further, the antenna <b>132</b> can have zigzagging or undulating portions as shown on the flaps <b>111</b> and <b>112</b> in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref>. A higher number of detection zones are thus formed over the envelope so that even a small incision of the envelope can be detected. More generally, undulation or zigzag angle is chosen so as to prevent any extraction of a document or of an object from the packaging. Therefore, the spacing between undulations or zigzags is determined as a function of the size of the object enclosed in the packaging.

0030Also for the purpose of increasing the level of detection of opening of the envelope, said envelope can be provided with weak portions that correspond to discontinuous cuts or to micro-perforations at the zones in which the flaps are bonded, so as to cause a fraction of the flap and/or of the corresponding portion of the envelope to tear. In the example shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref>, weak zones <b>141</b> and <b>142</b> are respectively present on the flap <b>112</b> in the zone through which the antenna circuit <b>133</b> passes, and on the portion <b>120</b> in the zone in which the flap <b>112</b> is bonded. Thus, any attempt to open the flap <b>112</b> causes one or more fractions of it and/or of the portion <b>120</b> to be torn off. The fractions torn off from the flap <b>112</b> generate irreversible breaks in the antenna circuit. Weak portions can naturally be present on the other flaps and corresponding portions of the envelope.

0031<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 5</figref> shows a variant embodiment of an envelope of the invention that can be checked for tampering. The envelope shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 5</figref> differs from the envelope of <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref> in that complementary portions of the antenna circuit <b>333</b> are disposed both on the flaps and on the main portions of the envelope. In the example shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 5</figref>, a portion of the antenna circuit <b>333</b> is disposed on the flap <b>312</b> while a complementary other portion, corresponding to the portions of the conductor <b>3331</b> that are missing from the flap <b>312</b> is disposed on the portion <b>320</b> on the other side of the sheet of material. Thus, it is only once the envelope is closed by the flap <b>312</b> being folded over and bonded by adhesive onto the portion <b>320</b> (which has been folded over onto the portion <b>310</b> as shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2</figref>) that the conductors <b>3331</b> and <b>3332</b> form a continuous path over the inside surface of the sheet of material, thereby closing the antenna circuit <b>333</b>. When the envelope is closed, its configuration is as shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2</figref>. This makes it possible to detect any opening of the envelope by unsticking the flap <b>312</b>. Even if the flap <b>312</b> is unstuck carefully, it must then be stuck back accurately, i.e. reliably and by being correctly fitted back into place, otherwise the antenna circuit remains open and thus non-operational.

0032In addition, as in the embodiment shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref>, weak portions (defined by pre-cuts) <b>341</b> and/or <b>342</b> can be present in particular in the zones through which the circuit <b>333</b> passes, thereby making it impossible to open the envelope without tearing the weak portions, giving rise to irreversible break points in the antenna circuit.

0033The use of weak portions is described herein with reference to envelopes, but they can also be implemented in any other type of packaging.

0034Therefore, in accordance with the invention, it is possible to implement envelopes that can be checked remotely for tampering with a very high level of reliability. In addition, since the electronic component <b>130</b> and more particularly the antenna <b>132</b> are disposed only inside the envelope, it is very difficult to determine the points through which the antenna passes when looking from the outside of the envelope. In addition, the component <b>130</b> is protected inside the envelope, thereby making it possible to prevent said component from being damaged by handling of the envelope during sorting or transport.

0035<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 3 and 4</figref> show a second embodiment of packaging of the invention. In this embodiment, the invention is applied to a foldable box <b>200</b> as in common use for postal parcels. The principle implemented is the same as described above with reference to the envelope <b>100</b> shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 1 and 2</figref>.

0036As shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 3</figref>, an electronic component <b>230</b>, formed by an electronic chip <b>231</b> connected to an antenna <b>232</b>, is disposed on the inside surface of a sheet <b>201</b> of cardboard or the like. The antenna <b>232</b> extends at least in the vicinity of the entire periphery of the envelope (turn <b>233</b><i>c </i>in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref>) so as to cover all of the edges of the box <b>200</b>. In this way, the circuit <b>233</b> of the antenna <b>232</b> passes at least once over the fold lines that form the edges of the box <b>200</b> after it has been assembled (<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 4</figref>).

0037As in the above-described envelope, the antenna circuit <b>233</b> can also extend over the main faces inside the box <b>200</b> (turns <b>233</b><i>a </i>and <b>233</b><i>b</i>) so as also to cover the faces thereof (i.e. the lid, bottom, and side faces). Therefore, any opening made on any one of the surfaces of the box can also be detected. The antenna can be disposed in the form of a conventional winding, or in undulating or zigzagging form in order to increase even further the number of detection zones in the box.

0038Like the above-described envelopes, the packaging of the foldable box type can include weak portions serving as opening indicators. Such portions, which are made weak by means of pre-cuts, are irremediably torn off when the packaging is opened, thereby enabling opening of the box to be seen even if the opened portions are stuck back on. Such indicators are shown on the box <b>200</b> in FIGS. <b>3</b> and <b>4</b>. They are formed by a series of pre-cut circles <b>241</b> and <b>242</b> disposed on respective ones of the flaps <b>212</b> and <b>221</b> via which the box is opened. In a box, or in any other type of packaging provided with such indicators, it can be advantageous to dispose a portion of the antenna circuit over said indicators so as to increase detection of any attempt to open the box.

0039The above-described antenna circuits <b>133</b> or <b>233</b> can be formed using a very thin flat conductor wire that is bonded with adhesive to the inside surface of the sheet of material prior to assembly, or else by means of conductive ink deposited by printing on the inside surface of the sheet of material. Forming the antenna by depositing (printing) a conductive ink makes it easy to achieve varied shapes, in particular undulations or zigzags, in the antenna circuit.

0040The antenna circuit shapes that are described above are merely examples of possible configurations for an antenna circuit. The person skilled in the art can, without any difficulty, imagine any other antenna circuit shape adapted to the shape or to the dimensions of the packaging or to particular packaging security needs.

0041The invention proposes packaging that is provided with electronic means that make it possible not only to identify and track the packaging remotely, but also to check the packaging rapidly and reliably for tampering. Such checking does not require implementation of means other than those in common use because it is performed when reading the information stored in the electronic chip. If the reader cannot read the stored information, that indicates that the antenna circuit has been broken during fraudulent opening of the packaging.

0042The means used to read the information remotely are well known. For example, the stored data, such as an identification code, can be read by means of a portable reader (not shown) which mainly comprises a display screen, a control keypad, and means (a transponder) for activating the chip by radio-frequency (RF). The activation means send a radio-frequency wave to the chip via the antenna fixed inside the packaging. The received wave charges a capacitor present in the circuit of the chip which, while the capacitor is discharging, sends back to the reader a code or an item of information written in the memory of the chip.

0043The code and/or the items of information of each chip interrogated are thus send to the reader and displayed on its screen and/or stored in a memory, or transferred, via a serial link, to a processing computer for sorting or tracking the packaging.

0044Alternatively, when identification and tracking are to be performed on a large scale and automatically, it is possible to use various types of non-portable readers, such as a reader of the gantry type under which the items of packaging pass, which items of packaging have antenna shapes that enable reading to take place on a large scale and from a greater distance.